


I wouldn't change it for the world

by eversincenewyork (carlammenezes)



Category: Figure Skating RPF
Genre: Angst and Feels, F/M, I could never write something that didn't have a happy ending, Infertility
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-05
Updated: 2018-11-11
Packaged: 2019-08-18 20:15:13
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,063
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16523882
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/carlammenezes/pseuds/eversincenewyork
Summary: Ain't it funny how life changesYou wake up, ain't nothing the same and life changesYou can't stop it, just hop on the train andYou never know what's gonna happenYou make your plans and you hear god laughingLife changes, and I wouldn't change it for the world.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Title and summary from Thomas Rett's song Life Changes.   
> I had this idea the other day, shared it on Twitter and decided to write it.   
> It was supposed to be something else, but I just couldn't do it and this is what we have haha I still felt like sharing it.   
> THANK YOU to the amazing women that helped me with this editing, suggesting, creating: @clairesmh, @awakeanddreaming and @only_because3. Writer's Guild, you're insane but I love you.

Two lines.

Pregnant.

It’s what the stick says.

Except she’s not.

_Chemical._

That’s what the doctor tells them, the next day.

_It’s okay, it’s only been a few months._

A few more months still, and she watches their nieces on an Easter Egg Hunt.

And thinks:

 _Soon_.

When she blows the candles on her chocolate cake, she only has one wish.

Scott is in his element, Canada gear head to toe.

His favorite holiday.

They light up sparklers by the fire.

She tells him she’s gonna have a quick shower.

A test.

_Not pregnant._

And another.

And another.

All the same solitary pink line.

Until it’s not.

_Pregnant._

But it doesn’t last a month before pain grips her abdomen.

_Not pregnant._

It’s a day after his birthday when she finally voices it out loud.

_There’s something wrong with my body._

They go to the doctor.

There’s nothing wrong with her body.

There’s nothing wrong with his either.

_It’s just a matter of time, babe._

Tic toc.

Fall is her favorite season. She likes how the leaves cover the roads and how they feel under her feet when she runs at the park.

Not yet.

Tic toc.

She’s helping her mom wrap all the grandkids gifts when a tear drops on the paper.

She didn’t even realize she was crying.

That’s when she finally tells her mom they’ve been trying.

Tic toc.

And trying.

Soon enough, the whole family knows.

“You should try eating white peonies, it worked for my cousin’s cousin.”

Tic toc.

“Have you tried drinking raspberry leaf tea? I’ve heard it’s really good for… you know.”

Tic toc.

No one has the courage to mention the word to them.

Tic toc.

“You should light a candle and then pray for Saint Cosmas and Damian. A friend of a friend did that and she’s pregnant with twins!”

Tic toc.

There’s always an elephant in the room.

Tic toc.

She runs into an old friend at the grocery store.

“When are you going to have a baby?”

It’s the million dollar question.

When the ball drops and the fireworks explode, they kiss.

And she prays. She’s never done it before.

Some days later, Russell emails them the cover of Hello! Canada.

Scott sees it first.

_I’m gonna call those bastards._

_What is it, Scott?_

When he hands her the phone, she sees a picture of her at the mall with Jordan the week before.

Wearing a loose fitting shirt.

**“Virtue and Moir: A Canadian Royal Baby on the way!”**

She doesn’t cry.

She shuts off.

That night, she wakes up at 3 a.m and Scott is not by her side.

A sound of soft crying.

She finds him sitting on the bathroom floor.

They cry together.

_I failed you._

_You could never._

Another month passes by.

Not pregnant.

_Maybe I wasn’t born to be a mother. Maybe I should set Scott free._

Jordan laughs.

Tessa glares at her.

_He would tie himself around your legs._

_Jojo._

_Not possible, sis. You were born holding hands with that boy._

Tic toc.

_Maybe you should find a woman that’s capable of giving you a baby._

_I thought you wanted this as much as I do._

She does.

Oh Lord, she does.

That night, they aren’t speaking with each other.

But they fall asleep holding hands.

He gives her flowers and way too many chocolates on Valentine’s Day.

During dinner, he says the word that’s been on his mind for a while now.

Adoption.

_Our kid could be out there, T. Waiting for us during all this time we’ve been waiting for her._

She doesn’t like the idea at first. She leaves the table and he knows better than to follow her.

Hours later, he watches the re-run of last night’s hockey game and pretends he cares about it.

He didn’t hear her light footsteps getting closer to him.

_Are you okay?_

It’s the first thing he says when he looks at her.

_So, our girl. Tell me more about her._


	2. Ain't it funny how life changes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for the reactions to the "prologue", they made me very very happy. I hope you like this one as well, it's waaay happier because I can't for the life of me not write a happy ending, so here we go.
> 
> Thanks again to the wonderful @clairesmh and @only_because3 - you're the best. And to the Writer's Guild, I really love you girls so much.

That night, they don’t go to bed. 

It’s just the two of them, two glasses of wine and a browser history that showed them, step by step, how they were gonna do this. 

She makes a spreadsheet because that’s the way her mind works. 

He watches her in awe. 

Of how strong she is, of how passionate she sounds when she tells him why they should go for a national adoption. 

_ Can you imagine us having a kid that isn’t canadian, Scott? It doesn’t match your wardrobe.  _

When they consider a private adoption, she learns that they have to write a letter to the birth mother to introduce themselves. 

And she can’t help but write it in her mind. 

It would be something along the lines of  _ above everything else, you should know this baby is going to be raised by two best friends. A girl and a boy who first held hands at the age of seven and nine. A girl and a boy who have been there for each other every step of the way, through the highs and the lows.  _

But in the end, they decide for a public one. 

Being in a judged sport for two decades and on the public eye for many more, she thought she’d be ready for this.

Turns out nothing prepares you to be judged by a person who have the power to decide if you’re worthy of having a child or not. 

Nothing. 

_ Relax, babe, we’re gonna nail this.  _

After countless visits, too many invasive questions and panic attacks, a  _ yes _ . 

They’re allowed to move forward. 

But as much as they’re used to be at the top of the lists, this time they have to start at the last place. 

And wait.

And wait. 

Wait for a match.

For their baby.

For their future.

When they finally get the call, they’re not able to sleep. 

When tomorrow comes and they walk into the orphanage, they’re holding hands.

As always.

When they’re being led to the nursery, she allows herself to picture a little baby with brown eyes, rosy cheeks and chubby legs.

Scott sees her first.

Through the window, in the backyard, wearing a Leafs’ jersey. 

There’s a stick in her hands, a puck made of socks on the floor, and she shoots. 

She runs to the area that’s supposed to be the goal line. She’s the goalie now. 

She misses the shot on purpose and runs back to where she was. 

And celebrates. Arms up and down, looking around herself as if she’s in an arena looking at a crowd. 

Tessa just knows. She’s their kid. 

Not a baby that she can dress with the cute little onesie that she’s bought and hid in a box in her closet. 

Not a baby that she can watch eating food for the first time, giving the first steps, saying the first words.

A girl. 

Scott looks at her and she asks the lady that welcomed them:

_ Can we talk to her? _

The woman nods, but asks them to join her at the office for a second. A few minutes later, she opens a photo album on the table in front of them and points to a picture. 

It’s the little girl, a few years younger, watching their Moulin Rouge program on TV. 

_ She was so excited, trying to replicate your moves.  _

When the woman tells them that the girl had asked for a pair of skates that year and they had to tell her they didn’t have enough money, they both cry. 

_ It’s okay, it’s been three years. She doesn’t remember that anymore. _

Her hands are shaking when they’re walking towards the girl.

How do you introduce yourself to your child?

It’s what she thinks.

What if she doesn’t like me? 

When they ask her what’s her name, she’s sure.

_ Catherine. _

Scott looks at her and there’s a multitude in his eyes.

_ We found her,  _ it’s what he’s trying to say.

_ Can we play with you? This beautiful girl right here is an amazing player,  _ is the first thing he says to the girl. She nods and her eyebrows go up, as if she’s trying to evaluate if they can really play. 

Yeah, Scott’s girl indeed. 

_ Catherine, how old are you? _

Seven.

She’s seven years old.

Tessa can’t help but think how both of their lives only truly began at the age of seven.

The girl’s eyes shine when she looks at Scott.

Of course they do. 

It’s been five minutes but they’re still parked outside.

Looking at each other.

Speaking with silent words.

His hands find hers.

_ Babe? _

He asks.

_ Yes? _

_ I think we just met our daughter. _


	3. You wake up, ain't nothing the same

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THANK YOU SO MUCH for all the support to this story here and @ Twitter. Really. These comments and reactions make me so happy, especially because this is a very different story and narrative than what I'm used to. 
> 
> Thanks to @only_because3 and @clairesmh, you're awesome, ladies.

She’s not theirs yet.

The first time they’re able to take her out for a day, the skate shop is their first destination.

Catherine doesn’t talk much, but when she realizes the new skates are really hers, she gives them - at the same time - a timid hug. 

Alma closes the rink earlier and the three of them have the ice to themselves. 

All of the masterclasses they’ve taught didn’t prepare them for that one. 

The second time, they take her to their house. 

She talks a little bit more and they fall in love with her laugh. 

They play hockey in the backyard just like the very first day.

Later on, he catches the two of them making an impromptu photoshoot in Tessa’s closet. He offers to take the pictures.

The third time is a surprise for Scott. When Tessa picks him up at Gadbois, he enters the car, gives her a kiss and hears someone cleaning their throat. 

_ Hi. _

And he cries. 

But she’s not theirs yet. 

The fourth time, Catherine meets Alma and Kate.

For a while, Scott and Tessa think they chose Catherine.

Some time later, they realize Catherine chose them.

After six months, they finally bring her home. 

She promises herself she isn’t going to go all out with Catherine’s room because they still didn’t grant them the right to legally adopt her yet. 

_ They still can take her away from us.  _

They paint the room a light purple, hang fairy lights on the roof, put together a beautiful, princess-like white bed and buy way too many toys for her, but  _ we’re doing this to make her feel at home.  _

Tessa receives the call two days before Father’s Day. She asks them to send her a copy of the document, prints a copy and puts it in a blue envelope. 

Two days later, when Catherine opens their room’s door carefully, trying not to wake up Scott, and Tessa gets in holding a tray with the breakfast they just made for him, with waffles, a fruit salad and a blue envelope, it happens for the first time. 

She knows Scott isn’t actually sleeping, he woke up before she did and Tessa made him promise he would stay in bed so Catherine could  _ surprise  _ him. The girl has been excited to do that for the whole week. 

_ Let me take it to the bed,  _ mom _.  _

And that was when Scott couldn’t pretend anymore. 

Mom. 

He looked at Tessa and saw the tears in her eyes. She saw the same in his.

_ Are you guys crying  _ again?

And Tessa thinks about how mothers - most of the time - can hold their babies as soon as they’re born. They wait for nine months and then here they are. And she knows her daughter took a little bit more time to be in her arms, but she is there now. Oh, she’s there. 

On the 24th of December she helps Kate put all of the gifts under the tree. 

She catches a glimpse of their Christmas card. 

It’s a picture taken by her mother that has Catherine on ice, perfectly balanced on her feet, with Scott and Tessa holding hands right behind her. 

_Merry Christmas_ _from the Virtues and Moirs._

_ P.s: No, Tessa hasn’t agreed to marry me yet. - Scott.  _

When they’re back on tour the next summer, they have a problem in their hands. 

How they’re gonna fit a small pink bed on a bus?

But they do.

And even though it’s a mess,

It’s  _ their  _ mess.

And their way too early mornings and playful fights that end with chocolate sauce all over their clothes.

And if you ask her,

She wouldn’t change it for the world. 

**Author's Note:**

> You can yell at me down below or at @eversincevm.


End file.
